Thoughts on unlocks 🔓
Recently, I've seen some indie game developers out there write what they call a "taste manifesto". In which they basically talk about what they like and dislike. (without commenting on if they think it's good or bad design).
Eventually I'd like to make such a manifesto too but before that I want to yap about some more specific topics.
Today's topic are "unlocks".
Now, what do I mean by unlocks?
As I am developing an action roguelite myself and am very much in the space of indie roguelites, I am talking about the sorta unlocks that are items, characters, levels, skins or even game modes.
I grew to dislike (possibly hate) the current state of unlocks we have in (from what I can observe) 9/10 indie (roguelike) games.
The go-to is to attach these mini quests to an unlock. These achievement-esque tasks need to be fulfilled to acquire the desired thing.
For example: "Use 50 keys to unlock the Thief class." or "Upgrade a Spear or Polearm Weapon to Level 4." (Examples from my own game.)
Sooooooooooo...
I think, ... that we don't do these right.
If we want to prompt players to engage in these little special quests we give them, we need to put in a considerable amount of effort, which most devs, including me, usually don't do.
This includes:
Updating the player and giving them information on the current state of the unlock DURING a run.
Letting the player select or highlight an unlock to focus on during the next run.
Prompting the player during a run that they have an opportunity to fulfil an unlock during a run.
Giving the player access to information about unlocks during the run. (Simple: a menu. Hard: when an opportunity for an unlock arises, let them lock in.)
... and those points probably barely scratch the surface of the workload that should be put into unlocks.
I recently watched a streamer play Nuclear Throne and going for a new skin. For this unlock, they have to only get 4 mutations and defeat the final boss. Turns out, the most miserable part of the challenge wasn't being weaker (due to only having 4 mutations) but was having to annoyingly manage their rads (EXP) to not accidentally over-level.
In my opinion, if you put an unlock like this into your game, you should make it a thing that you can opt in and then it alters the game. So it would put you into this challenge run in which you can only acquire 4 mutations and then you can't level up further. If you do this, it suddenly also opens up space for the player feeling smart how to tackle the unlock. For example, because they know they can only get 4 levels, they now can pick the character that spends EXP to shoot enemies. Suddenly, instead of feeling stupid and annoyed by the arbitrary constraint of having to manage EXP, they feel smart and rewarded for finding an optimal strategy in a new mode.
Obviously we don't do this for all our unlocks because it would be too much work.
The reason we put unlocks into our game in the first place is because we are scared that the player will "run out of things to do" so we gate content behind playtime. "Best case scenario", we come up with a bunch of useless things to unlock via time intensive and convoluted tasks.
Ok, I am overexaggerating a bit... but it's also the truth. 😅
For me, these kind of "quest unlocks" have like 3 possible outcomes:
I unlock a thing by accident. (I didn't gain nor lose nor made any meaningful decision.)
I need to do this hyper specific challenge quest run ONCE and then never ever am faced with the skills I had to acquire for this challenge again.
I need to put a sticky note on my monitor to not forget that I should use keys, bombs and drink potions every run because I am currently working on drinking 367 potions to unlock the Alchemist class.
I don't like any of these.
You know what I like a lot more?
The idea of "progression by my player's own volition".
Also: I like the idea of skipping all these negative aspects of unlocks and simplifying the system - doing less work and by doing so making a better game.
Hence I am actually planning to change how characters are unlocked in Tiny Rogues.
Instead of these arbitrary mini achievements I am actually going back to a more simple "shop system". Every run will earn you a currency called "crowns" and you can spend those crowns to unlock whichever character you think looks cool and you want to play next.
This way:
You don't have to keep track of arbitrary metrics.
You can focus on learning the game and doing best every run, diving into the emergence and going with the flow. (The intended way to be successful in the game.)
You don't have to engage with arbitrary one-trick runs in which you face a problem you'll never ever face again.
You can play whatever character you want and not "lose progress". E.g.: you can spend your first 50 hours of the game spamming Ranger runs and then just unlock everything you want. (Instead of: "Oh, you have to play the Knight to unlock the Paladin. Now please play the Mage to unlock the Warlock, ...")
I don't have to do things I don't want to, to get to play content I do want to play.
I don't really know why this simple shop system speaks so much more to me.
I just think back to 13 years ago when I first installed League of Legends (I know, I know) and I looked at the giant roster of champions and I couldn't be more eager to tell my friends about what champion I want to buy next.
Now, you might be like "But I like when the game gives me some sort of unlock challenge which prompts me to play differently".
And to that I say:
THE FOKKIN GAME SHOULD BE DOING THIS WITHOUT UNLOCKS.
We pride ourselves on buzzwords and buzz-phrases like "infinite replay-ability" and "No run the same".
Yet, - we rely on making our players collect 30 gwarfarblewarbles during a run 'cause usually they would never pick up any gwarfarblewarbles cause our game sucks and has no emergence and even if it does, we wouldn't prompt nor reward it because we are blind and scared and please unlock +1% Attack Speed in the meta progression system.
Fuck it, I'll say it: I don't think "Reach the Nuclear Throne without shooting." is "good design". I think good design would be if a run, randomly, naturally, made it so that it's advantageous to you to not shoot and suddenly BOOM: emergence! Whatever the "skill of not shooting" is, it's important now. Evolve and adapt motherfucker! And this and many other required skills (and opportunities) possibly become important more than once throughout your entire "Nuclear Throne Career". What a novel concept in the industry! (Sorry to harp on nuclear throne, that game is an absolute GOAT btw. It's not even centered around unlocks, it's just a recent example. It's also a quite old game at this point, so I forgive it.)
TLDR:
I don't like this:
Is something wrong with me? Probably.
Do extrinsic challenges have value? Probably. Am I tired of devs giving me glorified TODO-lists of 30 ways to progress in their "infinite replayable" game? Yes.
Will I possibly put unlocks into future games of mine? Maybe, if I am not feeling lazy.
Are there games out there which arguably don't do any of this and yet I don't play them because I have a smooth brain like every other gamer and I like being baited into playing by a promised feeling of "progression"? Yes, definitely.
Either way, dont @ me when in 2 years from now I revert the shop unlock system into a quest unlock system again and make another essay about how I was wrong in 2025.
PS: Tiny Rogues update is coming 2026.
